Diagonaldi Very well executed

Hadrina The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Kayden This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

Cheryl A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

vispateresa First of all, I'd like to reply to one of the reviewers (Kastellos) who dismisses hip-hop music as cheap and says that hip-hop artists become successful only on luck. Well, I'd like to inform him/her that The Roots are one of the most revered bands not only in the hip-hop world, but internationally, since they blend soul, hip-hop, rhythm'n'blues; their songs have been used for the soundtrack of dozens of movies and one of them topped the charts in 2002. The Roots are a solid band, and it shows right from the beginning of the movie, when they perform one of the best songs of the soundtrack, a track a lot more mature and layered than your "average" hip-hop track. I borrowed the DVD from the library mainly because of the soundtrack, and I have to admit it's what saves an altogether messy movie. The actors are barely beyond amateurish, Karen Starc is very pretty but she definitely needs more acting lessons, like most of the cast (with the exception of Bonz Malone and David Vadim). The story of the clash between black and Jewish communities could have been told much better with a better script and cast. Some "documentary" takes give a flavor of reality, but the movie falls in many ways. All in all, a mediocre movie saved by a great soundtrack.

atman-6 Of course it is Romeo and Julliet, but then so many movies and plays and books are Romeo and Julliet. It is a time honoured tradition to interpret a classic story. The leads in this film play star-crossed lovers in a very touching way. I must admit that there were a number of times in this movie where it felt "hollow" (like when the subject of a painting or a sketch isn't balanced out by the negative space) and I told myself that this movie was the working of a director who was still growing into a mature ability. Nonetheless I became involved with the characters: As protagonists, Sara, King Sol, and Don Ras; And as antagonists Judah and Sketch. Great work folks. There was only one scene that was much stronger than the rest of the movie and which had a very different feel from the rest of the film, and if you have seen this movie then you will be nodding your head with a smile.

sdrogue On a lot of levels this movies comes after several other films that belong in the same genre...do the right thing, save the last dance, romeo and juliet...etcetera...but all films take from other films and all are designed to showcase something new against something familiar...for me it was the fact there is such a tension in the city...and how against such a huge mess, ppl still have unique and personal problems to solve.... I also though this film was very well shot, i loved the way they used the pull focus technique throughout and let the camera get intimate with the characters during the scenes... I loved the music and thought that was brilliant how it showcased their talents without it being a "concert movie" good rental, would recommend it... agreed, that I would like to see the lead actors in a more demanding story...

xhari_nairx I agree with the last reviewer that the best thing about this film is the fact that it features DA ROOOOOOTS!!! Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter stars as an up and coming MC of an organic hip hop band.... basically he does a fine job playing a character based on himself. Karen Goberman is also good as the female lead, although their relationship isn't very well written, which holds true for the writing as a whole. Everything about the film except for the performances feels contrived.... their relationship, the tension between the Black and Jewish communities that it's set against (even with the understanding that these tensions are very real). I'd like to see Tariq and The Roots working on other films.... hopefully next time they'll have a better script to work with.